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Specialty Box Office: 'Theory of Everything' Quickly Lands in Top 10

The Stephen Hawking biopic stars Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones

The awards race is heating up at the specialty box office.

In its third weekend, filmmaker James Marsh's The Theory of Everything landed at No. 10 as it expanded into a total of 140 theaters, grossing a strong $1.5 million for a cume of $2.8 million and location average of $10,714.

The Stephen Hawking biopic stars EddieRedmayne and Felicity Jones, and is being released by Focus Features.

Focus said a third of holdover theaters grossed more than they did last weekend, while new theaters saw gains of 100 percent from Friday to Saturday. By Thanksgiving, Theory of Everything will be playing in more than 700 theaters.

Birdman stayed in the top 10 in its sixth weekend, earning $1.9 million from 862 theaters for a cume of 14.4 million. The Fox Searchlight and New Regency dramedy placed No. 9.

A slew of other awards hopefuls likewise continued to grow their footprints.

Bennett Miller's biopic, Foxcatcher, starring Channing Tatum as Olympic wrestling champion Mark Schultz and Steve Carell as his fanatical millionaire coach John du Pont, expanded into a total of 24 theaters in its second weekend. The Sony Pictures Classics release grossed roughly $474,000 for a location average of $19,764 and cume of more than $822,000.

In its second weekend, director Tommy Lee Jones' The Homesman grossed an estimated $140,000 as it upped its total theater count to 33 for a location average of $4,242 and cume of $202,000. Roadside and Saban Films are partners on the Western, starring Jones opposite Hilary Swank.

Jon Stewart's feature directorial debut, Rosewater, continued to underwhelm in its second outing, earning $578,000 from 331 theaters for a 10-day cume of $2.1 million. The drama stars Gael Garcia Bernal as MaziarBahari, the journalist imprisoned for 118 days in Iran, a story covered by Stewart on The Daily Show.